Policies

RESOLUTION ON THE PRESERVATION OF UNIVERSITY RECORDS AND THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

The records of the official activities of the University officers and offices are the property of Michigan State University.

Such property is not to be destroyed without the approval of (a) the officer in charge of the department where the papers are produced or accumulated, and (b) the Director of Archives.

Restrictions may be placed on the use of confidential records and papers entrusted to the Archives by the Board of Trustees, administration officials and other donors.

A University Archives shall be established under the direction of an archivist who shall be responsible to the Executive Vice President and Secretary to the Board and the Provost of the University.

The Archives shall be the depository for University records which are no longer administratively useful in the several departments, but which have historical or other value. The Archives may also receive personal papers of officials, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and others.

Applicable Laws and Regulations

There are many federal and state laws and university regulations, ordinances, and policies that pertain to the management, retention, and accessibility of university records.

Federal laws applicable to university records management include, but are not limited to:

Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), also known as the Buckley Amendment—Signed into law August 21, 1974, and effective November 19, 1974, FERPA protects the privacy of student education records. FERPA allows the student to have some control over the disclosure of personally identifiable information from the educational record.

Privacy Act of 1974 or Omnibus code of fair information practices—Effective September 27, 1975, this act regulates the collection, maintenance, use, and dissemination of personally identifiable information. The purpose of the act is to restrict disclosure of information about individuals with the rights of the individuals to be protected against unwarranted invasions of their privacy.

Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Privacy Rule (HIPAA)—Effective August 21, 1996, and revised August 14, 2002, this act established a set of national standards for the protection of certain health information. The privacy rule addresses the use and disclosure of individuals’ health information as well as standards for individuals’ privacy rights to understand and control how their health information is used.

UAHC has developed retention schedules designed to satisfy these university and governmental requirements.